If you could see my house right now, it would be no secret that it is in need of some major de-cluttering and organization. I will be the first to admit, housework does not really make me jump for joy, and I’d honestly rather leave it to the birds. I will also admit though, that I don’t like living in a messy house — I just wish someone else would clean it for me 🙂 .

With my recent pregnancy, working 2+ jobs, and raising kids, I have just been feeling overwhelmed and stressed. Although my husband is a great help (he does most of the laundry and dishes), I find that the rest of our home has pretty much been neglected over the last few months. I’m ready for a change, and I know my husband is too (he gave me a two week deadline to get the house in order before he does it himself…which means he’ll move all my stuff around and I won’t be able to find anything!). Although I’d be grateful for the help, I’d also like to be able to find my things rather than have them all piled in a box somewhere. Time to get my butt in gear – and enlist the family on an action plan we can all live with!

This is not my house, but realistically…what my house would look like if you saw it. 🙂

Although I think two weeks is a bit of a tight deadline, I know I can tackle the major eye-sores (or the areas that I know my husband is most concerned about) within that time frame, leaving me plenty of time to work on the rest of the house later. I’m gearing up to do a 4 week house cleaning challenge just to get started; and I hope anyone who needs to get a little organization in their lives will join along with me. I’m actually kind of excited to get started (I can’t believe I’m even saying that :-)); I’m ready for our house to be clutter free, and we desperately need to clean out the guest room, which will be the new baby’s room!

Take the 4 week organization challenge!

Are you ready to take the challenge with me? Let’s get a head start on our house cleaning needs in this first 4 weeks, then we can work on maintaining organization and cleanliness throughout the year!

Just remember, if you look at your home as one huge mess of a project that has to be perfect overnight, you are going to feel overwhelmed and probably plop yourself right back on the couch popping bonbons and watching reruns of The Walking Dead. Instead, take things slowly, tackle one room at a time.

How the challenge works

Each day I will post a challenge to be completed. This will be a daily set of projects that can be easily completed throughout the day. Although this works best if you can stick to accomplishing each set of daily tasks, don’t feel bad if you miss a day. Life Happens. Simply come back and pick up where you left off and continue on!

I will also be posting my progress (with pictures) every day, along with a link-up for you to share your progress and pictures too!

The first challenge will be listed today and will include setting up your goals for the first week. If your goals differ from mine (which they probably will), feel free to adjust your daily task to fit your needs.

Day One Challenge

Today’s challenge is simple.

Make a list of 5-10 goals you would like to accomplish over the course of this week. Sit down with a nice relaxing cup of coffee or tea, and brainstorm some realistic goals that you want to achieve to make your house feel more like a home. I’ve included a free printable here: Weekly Goals. Please note that this form is pretty open ended. You can use each block as a main category and list details, or you can use each block as a day of the week. If you use as days of the week, there will be one day missing. Take a day of rest, or you can combine Sat/Sun (or any other two days) into one.

Find 5 items to get rid of today. Throw them out, put them in a bin designated for donation items or in a garage sale box. You can also give them to a friend or list them to sell, but make it a goal not to hang onto anything for more than a week. If it doesn’t sell, donate it.

Set a timer for 15 minutes and quickly pick up the main living areas of your home. Once you don’t have any stray toys or other random objects lying around the living room, or piles of papers on the dining room table, you will already start to feel a sense of accomplishment and relief!

(Please note: I am not an expert in organization by any means. I simply did a lot of research online and found many many resources on how to accomplish what it is I am looking to do. From there I came up with my own plan for what I thought would be a great way to achieve the goal of an organized home in four weeks. Feel free to take all the time and energy I put into researching this and try to organize your own home!).

Jesica H

My name is Jesica and I'm happy to 'meet' you! I'm just living life and loving every minute of it! I try to not let things hold me down or hold me back, I just live!
Here at The Mommy Bunch, I offer solid advice on all things parenting, household, and living life as a working mom.

Yes, double motivation indeed! Just remember, if you put it in a garage sale that means you are willing to part with it…so if it doesn’t sell, don’t bring it back in the house, donate it instead! 🙂Jesica H recently posted…4 Weeks to a Clutter Free Home: Challenge #1

Works for me! I am forever looking for 5 things to get rid of around the house, and we NEVER miss them!! Pared down the toys quite a bit this summer and kids are now playing better than ever. Uh huh. Go figure.Denise @ Go Cheap or Go Home recently posted…The One Thing to NEVER Buy Generic

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